1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an air bag unit for an automotive vehicle of protecting a passenger in a seat in case of collision of the vehicle, and, more particularly, to a unique arrangement of an air bag mount device for mounting the air bag unit and control switches for controlling accessories mounted on the vehicle.
2. Description of the Prior Art
It is known, in a vehicle having an air bag unit, to have the air bag unit mounted on a steering wheel device. The air bag, unit is provided with an air bag which is inflated by an inflater therein, to form an air cushion between a driver and the steering wheel in case of a collision. In this type of air bag unit, the air bag is covered with a bag cover having a breakable split line, by which the bag cover is split, to form an opening through which the air bag can be inflated outwardly.
It has been proposed to arrange some control switches on the steering wheel device for controlling various accessories mounted on the vehicle, such as an air conditioner and an audio device such as a radio. U.S. Pat. No. 3,819,205 disclosed a steering wheel device in which a control switch is arranged on a spoke portion of the steering wheel device with the air bag unit.
It should however, be noted that the spoke portion has insufficient space in which to arrange many switches. When the switches are arranged at a hub portion of the steering wheel portion, the switches may interfere with the inflating operation of the air bag, or the inflating operation may damage the switches.